RIDC President Don Smith was featured on the cover of TEQ Magazine’s Forty Forward issue, celebrating the Pittsburgh Tech Council’s 40th anniversary while looking forward and dreaming big about the next forty years.

Don’s dreams for the region forty years from now:

“Pittsburgh is already at the intersection of R&D and manufacturing, with universities producing world class talent and technology and a strong, existing manufacturing base. In 40 years from now, our region can be a model of a vibrant end-to-end economy, where great research leads to a steady pipeline of well-funded start-ups, which grow into mature companies, marketing products that are manufactured in the region and supplied by a local supply chain.

“Pittsburgh can be the place where artificial intelligence meets physical production, where we produce not only transformative technology, but technology that is integrated into workplaces and deployed to create higher-paying jobs for more people.

“With a new administration in Harrisburg, now is the time to set the tone for the future with a new policy environment. Decades ago, we were a center of experimentation and economic development strategy. Organizations like the Benjamin Franklin Technology Development Authority, the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, the Pittsburgh Technology Council and others – launched as State and regional economic development initiatives – were part of our region’s rebirth as a technology center.

“With energetic and innovative policy support from the Shapiro Administration, testing new models and mobilizing new streams of activity, we can compete effectively for the industries and jobs that will drive our economy forward.”